Welsh folks singer Dafydd Iwan has encountered harsh private assaults following his public request for right-wing protesters to stop utilizing his iconic track Yma o Hyd. The 40-year-old anthem, which honors Wales’ enduring spirit and has gained recognition amongst Wales soccer supporters, appeared in a social media video by Wrexham Unite to advertise an anti-immigration demonstration.
Iwan’s Stance on Music Misuse
On Monday, Iwan shared a submit on X, previously Twitter, stating that he doesn’t endorse the group’s hate-fueled initiatives and had not licensed the track’s use. Though he can’t legally forestall its playback, he emphasised that the protesters are misrepresenting the observe’s message.
Wrexham Unite responded by expressing delight in Wales as their homeland and in preserving its cultural heritage and nationwide id.
Particulars of the Wrexham Protest
Iwan’s feedback focused a march held in Wrexham metropolis middle on Saturday, organized by a number of teams together with Wrexham Unite. The occasion opposed plans to accommodate as much as 70 asylum seekers at Plas yn Rhos, a former assisted residing facility in close by Rhosllanerchrugog. Earlier this month, roughly 500 residents gathered at a village assembly to voice issues over the proposal.
Nevertheless, on Tuesday, Wrexham council introduced that the Residence Workplace had suggested in opposition to continuing with the location, successfully canceling the plans. Regardless of this improvement, Wrexham Unite indicated on Fb that the protest would proceed, citing suspicions that the Residence Workplace may search approval once more to accommodate asylum seekers there.
Earlier Related Incident
This isn’t the primary time Iwan has addressed such misuse. In June 2023, he urged protesters to cease enjoying Yma o Hyd throughout demonstrations in opposition to asylum seeker housing on the Stradey Park Resort in Carmarthenshire. After extended opposition, the Residence Workplace deserted these plans in October, citing efforts to shift asylum seekers to extra inexpensive, non-hotel lodging.
Iwan’s Views on Immigration and Tradition
In a current interview, Iwan voiced sturdy opposition to anti-immigration sentiments promoted by sure Welsh teams, searching for to distance himself solely from what he calls the harmful promotion of hatred. “I can not bodily cease them from utilizing my track,” Iwan, a former president of Plaid Cymru, acknowledged. “However I would like individuals to know that they don’t seem to be utilizing it with my permission, and that they’re mixing two very various things.”
Initially recorded within the early Nineteen Eighties, Yma o Hyd serves as a stirring tribute to Wales’ resilience, highlighting how the nation’s language, tradition, and integrity have endured in opposition to formidable challenges. “It springs from a love for our personal nation and our personal tradition,” Iwan defined. “However that does not imply we have now to do it with hatred towards anybody else.”
Iwan clarified that safeguarding Welsh id has no connection to blocking immigrants or asylum seekers. Since his submit, he has confronted on-line backlash from nameless sources, which he described as more and more private and cruel.
“What has come into the political debate previously few years is that this private nastiness, as a result of it is pushed by hate of people who find themselves completely different to us, and that is actually degraded the political dialogue in Wales and different international locations,” Iwan famous. He urged others to talk out in opposition to such negativity, refusing to yield to concern.
Wrexham Unite’s Place
Wrexham Unite affirmed its dedication to defending households from political selections that, of their view, remodel Wales right into a sanctuary with out group enter. “We is not going to ignore the hazard that the Senedd and Westminster politicians have brought on by sending unlawful financial migrants to reside throughout Wales,” the group declared, vowing to maintain their protests.
